


Happy Birthday

by PrplGrl



Category: Original Work
Genre: M/M, Some angst, mushy stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-28
Updated: 2017-04-28
Packaged: 2018-10-24 21:26:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10750125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrplGrl/pseuds/PrplGrl
Summary: Caraenyl's perfect plans for Merekai's birthday go awry.





	Happy Birthday

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Art_by_G](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Art_by_G/gifts).



> Birthday gift for art-by-g; Happy Birthday dear!!  
> Merekai belongs to art-by-g and used with permission.  
> Enjoy! <3

 

It was going to be _perfect_ ; Merekai would come home to a freshly made birthday cake, topped with only a few candles to blow out, his favorite steak dinner, and after some gifts and laughs would be taken to bed. Caraenyl had pictured it all week, excited to finally do something for his love for once. Not that he didn’t try to do so whenever he could, but Kai could be stubborn and would insist on doing things himself, no matter how he was feeling.

But today… **today** Cara was sure he could pull it off, so long as everything was ready by the time his lover was expected home from his restaurant. And it would be perfect.

The universe didn’t get that particular memo.

It happened so fast for Caraenyl; one moment he was enjoying a restful nap while the cake was in the oven, the next he awoke to smoke-filled air, the fire alarm screaming and intense heat coming from the kitchen. His lungs burned for oxygen, eyes watering as he hacked and coughed, somehow able to find and stumble out of the front door to his boyfriend’s house.

Fire trucks and an ambulance tore up the driveway a moment later, the redhead momentarily wondering if this was real as he continued to cough. He turned to see black smoke billowing from the shattered windows of the kitchen, licks of flame flickering through the broken glass and he suddenly hoped it was a dream.

The thought was pushed to the back of his mind, however, as he was gently scooped up by the paramedics and placed upon a stretcher. They asked Cara many questions, some of which he couldn’t answer, as they checked him out. Worried he may have inhaled too much smoke, the paramedics rushed Caraenyl to the hospital, where he was asked even more questions and he tried his best to answer them through his coughing.

He was hooked up to several different machines to monitor his blood, heart, and lungs. For a while, all Cara heard were the sharp beeps as the doctors moved to other patients and it made him uneasy. There was a fire… in the kitchen. Had he… started it? Could a cake baking in the oven cause that kind of fire? Caraenyl couldn’t understand it; he had set a timer and put it upon the coffee table while he napped on the couch and he did not remember it going off. Perhaps the fire alarm drowned it out? But if that was the case, then wouldn’t the fire have been caused by something else?

Shaking his head, Caraenyl tried to sigh, but ended up coughing for a moment. It was going to be **perfect** …. ‘ _Should have known better._ ’ He tried to get some rest, the various wires and IV making it difficult to get comfortable.

It wasn’t long, however, until Merekai came barreling into his room. Cara was a bit surprised at first to see his boyfriend transformed fully into his werewolf form, which only happened if Kai was really upset or if there was a full moon. He expected to get it fully then; have his boyfriend howl at him for being foolish and owing him for nearly burning down his house.

“Caraenyl.” Kai said it softly, with a tenderness the redhead did not expect to hear. He looked up to see his boyfriend’s glowing green eyes brimming with tears before the werewolf lunged. Large arms wrapped tightly around Cara as he was pressed against Merekai’s broad chest. “I’m so glad,” he choked out in the same tone, “ _so glad_ you’re okay.”

‘ _…but it’s my fault._ ’ The redhead slowly returned the hug, the thought persistent.

It plagued him as Kai gave a small lick to his forehead before stepping out to make a few calls and remained a few hours later as his boyfriend sat beside him, holding his hand as the doctor explained how lucky Caraenyl was; no burns, no excess carbon monoxide in his blood, but they were warned that if Cara’s cough got worse over the next day or so to come back in. With that information, they left the hospital.

Merekai had already packed his truck with suitcases and Cara saw the two twelve-packs of bottled water in the extended cab seat. ‘ _I don’t deserve this…._ ’

It was already dark out and Kai took them to one of the more expensive hotels in town. Caraenyl tried to help with the luggage, but some of the larger bags winded him, which triggered a hefty coughing jag. Kai immediately had him sit on the tailgate and made him drink a few sips of water, watching carefully until the redhead was breathing normally again. Once the werewolf had removed all the suitcases, he allowed Cara to carry one while he piled the rest onto himself; “Don’t want to overexert yourself,” he said with a fang-y grin.

They checked into a room on the third floor (“Just until the house gets cleaned up!” He still had that smile, as if he were really happy over what happened.) and Kai insisted on doing all the unpacking while Cara took a shower.

After twenty minutes under nearly scorching water, Caraenyl could still smell smoke in his hair. By the time he emerged from the bathroom, his boyfriend had unpacked their things into the mostly-unused dressers of the room and even had recently delivered three cheese and sausage pizza (the redhead started drooling the moment he smelled it) sitting on the table, one of Cara’s favorite movies starting to play on the television.

Kai was still smiling, pouring water into an ice-filled cup, although he seemed to have finally calmed some as he stood in his human form. “Come and eat before it gets cold,” Merekai said gently, giving the redhead a warm glance before filling his own cup with soda.

Caraenyl found himself frozen where he stood. ‘ _I-I… don’t deserve…._ ’ He began to fidget, fingers playing with the hem of the large hoodie his lover let him wear, tears stinging his eyes, lower lip trembling. ‘ _…it’s all for me… I don’t want it! It should be about **him**!_ ’ A drip from his eye and a sniffle was all it took for Kai to be standing before Cara, hands gently rubbing his upper arms.

“What’s wrong, love?” ‘ _How can he sound like that?! Like he still cares, like I didn’t almost burn his house down, like I deserve any of his affection!_ ’

“…s-sorry,” Cara whispered, swallowing down a sob.

Merekai’s expression softened, a small, sweet smile curving his lips. “You don’t—”

“It was supposed to… be **perfect**!” the redhead blurted, hands shaking. Unable to gaze at his boyfriend, he looked at the large bed. “I j-just wanted to take care of you… just once, on your birthday. Yet here you are, taking care of me, again, on a day that should be all about you.” Cara forced himself to gaze into Kai’s green eyes. “I’m s-sorry I cause you all this trouble and I’ll understa—ak!” His sensitive throat twitched and another coughing jag started, Kai once again jumping into action; he sat Cara down on one of the chairs around the table and handed him the cup of ice water, gently rubbing the redhead’s back and whispering softly to drink and breathe.

Once the episode was over, Kai handed Caraenyl a tissue before kneeling in front of him, taking Cara’s free hand in his, eyes steady on Cara.

“It wasn’t your fault, love, and even if it was,” Merekai was quick to speak before the redhead could interrupt, “I know you would never do it on purpose. True, while I can’t say this has been one of my best birthdays, I can say that I was given the best gift; _you_.” Caraenyl’s eyes widened and Kai smiled. “Caraenyl, you were in a burning house long enough for one of the neighbors to see the smoke and call for help, and yet you walked away with only minor smoke inhalation. I was so terrified for you when I got the call that the house was on fire; I rushed home, but you had already been taken to the hospital.” One of Kai’s large hands gently cupped Cara’s face, his thumb slowly wiping away a stray tear. Merekai’s expression mirrored when he had seen Cara in the hospital. “To see you there, alive… that was the best birthday present I could receive. I live for you, love. I will take care of you, spoil you, love you until you turn me away. All I want… all I _need_ in return is your honest love. You have my heart, Caraenyl Lightshield.”

Cara sniffled, eyes overflowing with tears, matching the warm feeling in his heart. “Y-you have mine, Merekai Korveris,” he croaked.

Kai’s smile was big and loving as he leaned forward. “Forever yours,” he whispered and slowly, softly, kissed the redhead.

Caraenyl returned the kiss as best he could, his bottom lip kept trembling as the tears continued their trek down his stained cheeks. He couldn’t be sure, but it almost felt like they had just gotten married, Kai’s words struck that deep into him. He would cherish his lover for as long as he could and continue trying to make things perfect, hopefully with less fire next time.

They parted and, with a final smooch to Cara’s forehead, Kai helped his redhead wipe his face off before they dug in to the still-warm pizza. Caraenyl munched on his slice, snuggling into Kai when he moved his chair to be beside the redhead’s, and thought that, despite everything, things were finally perfect.

 

END


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